Can you use it in a sentence? Needs more context.

I'm writing about a building going up on a campus. The university's Board of Trustees just granted building approval. They had previously granted concept and site approval, and design approval. They still have to grant construction approval.

"Concept and site approval" makes sense to me. And I can understand that there would be a separate step to grant approval for the design of the building, and a separate step, perhaps, for actually beginning construction.

But I don't then understand where the "building approval" part of that comes in, and I'm not convinced I'm envisioning those other steps correctly.

I think building approval may have something to do with the architect's plans. A designer can design what they want, but an architect has to come up with a way to do it within building codes etc.

Speaking as someone in the field, the semantics of a project of this size can be quite convoluted.

Building approval (as I know it) is what the building department gives when they perform a construction plan review (of the documents that will be used to build the structure). This has to do with FLS (fire life safety), and involves a structural and mechanical review.

Construction approval is sort of the same thing, but it depends on the time-line of the project, and the steps involved in the actual construction. For example, construction approval could be the term that is used when various inspections are performed throughout the construction process.

Incidentally, for a building like this, the architect IS the designer, almost undoubtedly.

I think I understand.

And I'm pretty certain that's not really sexy enough to use as a hook for the story.

Sigh. I hate trying to invent news.

(But thank you!)

That makes sense, Specklet.